The present invention generally relates to a magnetic head, and more particularly, to a method of manufacturing a magnetic head for use in a magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus for reading data from a magnetic recording medium or writing data thereinto.
In the field of a magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus widely utilized for preservation of images and data, etc., there has recently been made marked progress for compact size and high density thereof. In order to achieve the smaller size and higher density in the construction of the apparatus, various improvements have been made on the magnetic recording medium and magnetic head employed therein. More specifically, in the magnetic recording medium, techniques for high coercive force and thin film formation have been advanced, and a thin film magnetic recording medium prepared by processing a ferromagnetic metallic material such as Co-Ni or the like through vacuum thin film technique, for example, sputtering, etc., and a metal-coated magnetic recording medium applied with ferromagnetic metallic particles such as Fe, Co, Ni, etc., are proposed for actual applications. These magnetic recording mediums have high coercive force two to four times that of a conventional recording medium applied with oxide such as Fe or the like, and make it possible to record or reproduce signals at high frequency regions. Meanwhile, with respect to the magnetic head, in order to achieve saturated recording of the magnetic recording medium having a high coercive force, there has been proposed a technique for forming portions in the vicinity of a magnetic gap of the magnetic head by a metallic magnetic material having a high saturation magnetic flux density.
In FIG. 10, there is shown one example of a conventional magnetic head which includes a set of magnetic cores 1 made of an oxide magnetic material, and metallic magnetic films 2 formed on opposed faces of the magnetic cores 1 by sputtering of an Fe-Al-Si alloy having a high saturation magnetic flux density or an amorphous magnetic material, etc., through a magnetic gap 3. In the magnetic cores 1, restricting grooves 4 are formed so as to restrict a width of the magnetic gap 3, with a glass material being filled in the restricting groove 4.
Another example of a conventional magnetic head shown in FIG. 11 also includes a set of magnetic cores 1B, and metallic magnetic films 2B formed on the opposed faces of the magnetic cores 1B through a magnetic gap 3B. The magnetic cores 1B are formed with restricting grooves 4B filled with a glass material in the similar manner as in the example of FIG. 10. In this example of FIG. 11, the joint portions of the metallic films 2B and the magnetic cores 1B are formed to be non-parallel with respect to the magnetic gap 3B.
In the known arrangement of FIG. 10 as described above, however, since the joint portions between the magnetic cores 1 and the metallic magnetic films 2 undesirably function as a pseudo gap, a pseudo signal noise due to the pseudo gap is produced during the recording and reproduction. For preventing generation of such pseudo gap, the joint portions of the metallic magnetic films and the magnetic cores are arranged to be non-parallel with the magnetic gap, thereby to suppress formation of the pseudo gap as in the conventional arrangement of FIG. 11. However, such a particular construction requires a complicated processing, thus resulting in deterioration in the mass-productivity.